


you make me happy (whether you know it or not)

by dumbkili



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Pining, paz is trying so hard and mabel is...oblivious, possible spoilers for the finale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2016-02-20
Packaged: 2018-05-22 05:46:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6067417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumbkili/pseuds/dumbkili
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>from a prompt i got on tumblr:</p>
<p> </p>
<p>  <i>Hey for gf prompts! Maybe they come back next summer and Pacifica notices that Mabel got like really pretty and she tries to flirt with Mabel but it's really hard because Mabel is a bit oblivious and Pacifica isn't used to things be so hard</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	you make me happy (whether you know it or not)

**Author's Note:**

> (Title is from _Happy_ by Never Shout Never)

The last time Pacifica Northwest sees Mabel Pines in 2012, she has bruises up and down her legs, bandages covering red scratches on her arms, and a stitched up cut on her face that sliced through one eyebrow and only narrowly avoided her eye itself. 

  


“What are you gonna tell your parents about that?” Pacifica asks. “It’s going to scar, you know.”

  


“Eh, I’ll just tell them I tripped up the stairs or something,” replies Mabel, and pulls the last poster off the wall. They’re in her and Dipper’s bedroom and the bus comes in half an hour, but Mabel’s not all packed up yet. She doesn’t seem very bothered by it. “I’ve done crazier junk before.” 

  


“Oh,” says Pacifica. It’s strange to listen to Mabel casually talking about lying to her parents, but then again, the Pines’ are not the Northwests. She fiddles with the sleeve of her shirt hesitantly. If her dad was here he’d tell her to stop, but he’s not. He’s at the real estate office. So she keeps fiddling. “Hey, Mabel?”

  


“Yeah?”

  


“Don’t do anything, like, totally crazy while you’re gone,” Pacifica tells her seriously. “The rest of the world isn’t as nice as us.” That gets her a laugh, and a warm feeling spreads across her chest. She ignores it. 

  


She leaves the house a few minutes later, and Mabel waves to her from the shattered bedroom window. 

  


“Bye Pacifica! See you next year!” she yells, and Pacifica grins up at her and nods. A promise. They’ll see each other again.

  


❀✿❀

  


The first time Pacifica Northwest sees Mabel Pines in 2013, she’s grown taller. Her hair is a little shorter, and the new style allows it to curl more around her face and shoulders. Her braces have been taken off, and she’s got a retainer that she only wears grudgingly. She’s gotten more freckled, and learned how to put on eyeliner. The scar bisecting her right eyebrow is smaller than the cut was, and surprisingly, it suits her. 

  


She’s really cute.

  


“Crap,” Pacifica hisses, ducking around a pillar in the only just fully repaired mall.  _ This is ridiculous _ , she tells herself.  _ You’ve wanted to see her all  _ year _ , and now you’re  _ hiding _?! What’s wrong with you?! _

  


She takes a deep, steadying breath.  _ No big deal. She probably doesn’t even want to talk to you anyway. You can just walk right on by and go home and start freaking out about this later. _ Confident in her plan, Pacifica walks out from behind the pillar. Directly into Mabel Pines.

  


“Pacifica!” she squeals, catching the other girl up in a huge, 100% genuine Mabel hug (that is, she lifts Pacifica clear off the ground and swings her around a fair bit). “I was worried I wasn’t gonna find you!”

  


“R-really?” Pacifica stutters, trying to escape from the vice like grip Mabel has on her midsection so she can breathe.  _ Okay, I can work with this. _ “Well, I’m here now, so...” She coughs, half out of awkwardness and half out of asphyxiation. She’d forgotten how… intense Mabel could be.

  


Mabel frowns. “Are you sick, Paz? Oh, wait, sorry.” She gently places Pacifica back on the ground with a little “Plop!” sound effect. “So how ya been?”

  


Pacifica takes a moment to get her breath back, then turns on her most winning, most “I am Miss Gravity Falls 2012”, most perfect-teeth smile. “I’m doing  _ great _ , Mabes, especially since I saw you.” Mabel’s cheeks get the tiniest bit pinker.  _ Okay, so far so good. _ “Hey, you wanna get lunch together or something? Catch up?” Perfect. A ten out of ten. Flawless execution. She gives herself a little mental high five. Whoever said Pacifica Northwest didn’t know how to flirt?

  


Mabel’s eyes light up. “Yeah, that’s a great idea! Dipper can come too!” She turns over her shoulder and calls out, “Hey Dipper! Look who I found!” Pacifica very slowly closes her eyes.

  


When she opens them again, she gets the absolute _privilege_ of seeing almost 14-year-old Dipper Pines, which is a distinctly less appealing sight than almost 14-year-old Mabel Pines. He got a new shirt since last year, and his hair is a little longer, but he still looks like he hasn’t slept in a month, and smells like he hasn’t showered in twice that. There’s pen on his face.

  


“Hi, Dipper.”

  


“Oh, uh, hey Pacifica.” He looks kinda spaced out, like he’s thinking about something completely different than where he is. That’s the thing that’s always bothered her a bit about Dipper, even though they’re pretty good friends now ever since that ghost thing. He blinks a few times and seems to shake himself out of it. “Sorry, I was up all night talking with Great Uncle Ford. Comparing notes and research and all that. Haven’t seen him in a year.”

  


“Then let’s get some caffeine in you, bro-bro!” Mabel cries linking one arm through his. “Paz, where’s the nearest overpriced coffee chain?”

  


“Coffee stunts your growth,” Dipper mutters, half to himself. Mabel rolls her eyes goodnaturedly. 

  


“Fine, soda then. Let’s get some fast food!” She turns back to Pacifica, amusement dancing across her face. “That is, if the lovely Princess Paz over here will grace the local Yumberjacks with her presence.”

  


Pacifica sweeps into her best and most ridiculous curtsey. “Anything to spend some time with Lady Mabel.” She wrinkles up her nose a little bit. “Oh, and Dipper too, I guess.”

  


“You’re the worst,” Dipper tells her, but he’s laughing. Mabel loops her other arm through Pacifica’s and pulls her and Dipper along to the restaurant, laughing the whole way. All in all, it’s a pretty great reunion. It just… didn’t go the way Pacifica had planned.

  


Over the course of the next few days, Pacifica tries again and again to get Mabel alone, for a proper catch-up session and maybe also a date, if she can work that one in there. But it keeps backfiring. Mabel invites Dipper just as often as not, and when he’s not there, it’s Grenda and Candy. Which, like, Pacifica doesn’t have anything  _ against _ all those people (not anymore, not since Weirdmageddon completely screwed around her priorities and knocked her family back to millionaire status) it’s just… she really,  _ really _ would like to talk with Mabel  _ alone _ .

  


“Maybe she just doesn’t like me,” she mutters to herself, pacing around her bedroom one night. “No, that’s ridiculous, I’m amazing. But does she like me like I like her? Does she even like girls? Oh my god, does she even like girls? No, I can’t start thinking like that. Just gotta go for it. But what if she turns me down? C’mon, it’s Mabel, even if she turns me down, she’ll do it nicely. It’s fine. I’ve got nothing to lose. Except I have  _ everything _ to lose. Crap.” She threads her fingers through her hair in frustration. “No, dang it, I’m Pacifica  _ freaking _ Northwest. I can do this.”

  


She knocks on the Mystery Shack door the next morning at seven a.m. It takes a few minutes, but eventually the door swings open and Mabel stands there in an oversized sleepshirt, rubbing her eyes exhaustedly. 

  


“Wha- Pacifica?” she gasps. “What are you doing here so early?” 

  


“Hi Mabel-” Pacifica begins, then freezes. This is so much harder than she thought it would be.  _ Ugh, what’s wrong with me? It’s just a few lousy words! Get a grip! _ Mabel is looking at her in confusion and growing concern, so Pacifica clears her throat and throws caution to the wind. “Hi Mabel. I really… I really like you, okay? And I’ve been trying to tell you for, like, this entire  _ week _ , but there’s always someone else around. So. This is me. Telling you I like you. Um.” She stares at the warped porch underneath her feet and wishes it was still Weirdmageddon so it could grow a mouth and swallow her whole.

  


“Wait… you mean, you  _ like _ like me?” 

  


“Yes,” snaps Pacifica, not bothering to look up and see Mabel’s face. She’s not brave enough to do that. “I thought it was obvious.”

  


“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE  _ PACIFICAAAAAAA _ !” Mabel shrieks, and launches herself at Paz for another rib-cracking hug. “Oh my gosh oh my  _ gosh _ !”

  


“S-ooo…” Pacifica manages to squeak out. “You wanna… get breakfast at Greasy’s or something? And  _ please _ don’t invite Dipper.”

  


“Pfft, Dipper’s down in the basement with Ford still,” says Mabel. “I think they’re both really happy Soos is still letting them use the lab even though Ford and Stan don’t own the shack anymore.” She quickly grabs a sweater off the coatrack by the door and pulls it on over her pajamas. “C’mon, let’s go!” she cries, slipping her feet into her sneakers and not even bothering to knot them. Pacifica stares at her in amazement. Her hair isn’t brushed, her pajamas are wrinkled, and there’s the imprint of bedsheets on one side of her face. She’s not wearing socks or makeup. She’s adorable.

  
“Yeah, let’s go,” Pacifica says, and follows her down the road into town.  


 

**Author's Note:**

> i love my small daughters & im currently on such a fic writing craze after the finale aaaaaaaaaaa
> 
> im ciphereye on tumblr if you wanna submit prompts or talk about stuff!


End file.
